Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, Ramsey Co., Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1905, 1887-07-16

"What for?" answered jess, who was seated
on the doorstep mending something, and
looking at her favorite view.
Because I want to speak to YOU"
She got up and went, feeling rather angry
with herself for going.
"Well," she said, tartly, there I am. What
is til"
81 have finished packing the cart, that's
ALL"
"And you mean to tell me that you have
brought me round here to say thatr'
eyes. Of course I have; exercise is good for
the young" And then he laughed, and she
laughed too.
1t was all nothing-nothing at all-but
somehow it was very delightful. Certainly
mutual affection, even when unexpressed,
has q way of making things 60 happily, and
can find something to laugh at anywhere.
Just then, who should CON up but Mrs.
Neville, in a great state Of excitement, and,
as usual, tanning herself with her hat.
"What do you think, Capt. Niell the
prisoners ave come in, and 1 heard one of
the Beers in charge say that he had a pass
signed by the Boer general for some English
people, and that he was coming over to see
about them presently. Who can it beY'
at is u.s." said jess, quickly. 1--WE are
going home. saw Hans Coctzee yesterday,
and begged him to try and get us a pass, and
l suppose he has,"
"My word! going to get outa Well, you
are lucky! Let me sit down and write a let
ter to my great uncle at the Cape. You must
post it when o can. He is "a and rather
soft, but I dare say he will like to hear from
me" and she bundled off into the house to
give her aged relative (who, by tho way,
labored under the impression that she was
still a little girl Of 4 years of age) as minute
an account of the siege Of Pretoria as time
would allow.
"Well, John, you had better tell Mouti to
put tho horses in. We shall have to start
presently" said jess.
cay" he said, pulling his beard thought
fully, II suppose that we SHALL" adding, by
way Of All afterthought: "Are you glad to
gop
"No!' she said with a sudden flash of pas :
sion II a stamp of the foot, und then turned
n entered the house again.
"Mouti," said John to the Zulu, who was
lounging around in a way characteristic of
that intelligent but unindustrious race, Sin
span the horses. We are going back to Moot
| fontein."
"Koos" Chief, said the Zulu unconcernedly,
and started on the errand as though it were
the most every day occurrence to drive off
home out of q closely ~beleaguercd town. That
is another beauty Of tho Zulu race; you cam
not astonish them. They, no doubt, consider
that that, to them, extraordinary mixture of
wisdom and insanity, the white man, is, as
the agnostic French critic said in despair of
the prophet Z~erubbabel, capable dc tout"
John stood and watched the inspanning
absently. Tho fact was that he, too, was con-
scious OF a sensation of regret. Hc felt
shamed of himself for it, but there it was;
he was sorry to leave the place. For the last
week or SO he had been living in a dream, and
everything outside that dream was blurred
and indistinct Us a landscape in u fog. He
knew the things were there. but no did not
quite appreciate their relative size and posi-
ton. The only real thing was his dream; all
else wa as vague as those far Off people and
events that we lose in infancy and find again
in old age.
And now there would he an end of dream
ing; the fog would lift, and he must face tho
facts. jess, with whom he had dreamed,
would go away to Europe and he would
marry Bessie, and all this Pretoria business
would glide away into the past like a watch
in tho night. Well, it must bo so; it was
right and proper that it should he so, and he
for one was not going to finch from his duty;
but he would have been moro than human
had he not felt the pang of awakening. 1t
was all SO very unfortunate,
BY this time Mouti had got tho horses up,
and asked if he was to inspan.
l "NoI walt a it," aulu john. "Very likely
it Is all rot" he added to himself.
Scarcely were the words out of his mouth
when he caught sight of two armed Beers of
a peculiarly unpleasant typo and rough ap.
pearance riding across tho veldt toward
"Thc Palatial" gate, escorted by four car
bineers. At the gate they stopped, and ono
of them dismounted and came up to where ho
was standing by the stable door.
Capt. Niell" lie said intorroratiyely in
English.
That Is my name."
"Tlen here is a letter for you," and he
handed him a folded paper.
John opened tit had no envelope-and
read Us follows:
"SIR-The bearer of this has with him a
pass, which it is understood that you desire,
giving you and Miss jess Croft a safe conduct
to Mooifontein, in the Wakkerstroom district
of tho republic. The only condition attached
to the pass, which is signed by ono Of the hon
orable triumvirate, is thai you must carry no
dispatches out of Pretoria. Upon your giving
your word of honor to tho bearer that you
will not do this he will hand you the pass"
This letter, which was fairly written and
in good English, had no signature.
"Who wrote this" asked John Of tho Boer.
"That is no affair of yours" was tho curt
reply. Wi you pass your word about the
dispatchesf"
ayes"
"Good. Here is the pass" and he handed
over that document to John. 1t was in tho
same handwriting as the letter, but signed by
the Boer general.
John examined it and then called to Jess to
come and translate 1t. She vas ON her way
round the corner of the house as he did so,
having heard tho voice Of the Boer.
ut means, Pass the bearers unbarmed,'"
she said, "and the signature is correct. l have
seen the generals signature before"
"When must We starts" asked John.
eat once, or not at all."
II must drive round by the h%eadquarter
camp to explain about my going. They will
think that l have run away"
To this the Boer demurred, but finally,
after going to the gate to consult his com
panion, consented, and the two rode back to
the h~eadquarter camp, saying that they
would wait for the cart there, whereupon the
horses were inspanned.
In five minutes everything was ready, and
the cart was standing in the roadway in
front Of the little gate. After he had looked
to all the straps and buckles and seen that
everything was properly packed, John went
to call jess. He found her standing by the
doorsteps, looking out at her favorite view.
Her hand was placed sideways against her
forehead, as though to shade her eyes from
the SUM-. But where she was standing there
was NJ sun, and John could not help guessing
why she was shading her eyes. She was cry